The Witch of Black Isle by Keira Montclair

Chapter Twelve

Jennet awakened and found herself tied to a tree. She must have passed out from the blow to her head for an hour or two because the day was growing short. The four men sat around a fire roasting rabbit meat.

They chattered incessantly while they ate, so she did her best to look around at her surroundings. There had to be something she could use…

Then she saw it. A large flock of birds sat in a nearby tree.

Baldy pointed to her and said, “She’s awake. Now can I have her?”

Red, his back to her, turned sideways to look at her. “I get her first. Then Harry.” He tipped his head toward the man she knew as Slim.

“What about me? I should get her first,” Ugly declared.

“Since you said that, you go last, you greedy bastard. Stop drooling.” Harry gave him a disgusted look that made Jennet think he had some honorable character inside him somewhere.

Red chuckled and said, “Get ready, lass. You’re about to pay for biting me.”

She didn’t say anything, instead formulating her plan in her head. She waited for one of them to move. It had to be timed just right. Red stood, so she said, “Untie me.”

“Now why would I do that? I’ll keep you there until I can focus on you, and I’m planning my attack right now.” He grinned at her, chewing the last bit of meat from the bones before he tossed them aside, drool rolling down his chin. “I will make it painful, just like that bite to my leg.”

Ugly giggled, but Red swung around to glare at him, so he shut up.

Jennet put her plan into place, one that had worked for her before, or at least a variation of it. “You know I’m a witch, do you not?”

Red said, “Sure you are.”

She began to chant something she’d learned long ago that probably made no sense, but she intended to use it. Her voice grew high and low. All four focused on her, hanging on every movement, every word, as if they would suddenly understand her strange words. When she knew she had their complete attention, she stopped and stared at them, her finger pointing to each one in turn. “I curse you and you and you and you.”

They waited—just what she’d hoped would happen.

Then she said, “I cast a spell on all of you. In the middle of the night, the evil witch of the caves will come upon each of you, send a snake with a forked tongue inside your trews to rip your sacs straight down the line. Directly down the middle.”

“Splitting my bollocks does not scare me. As long as I still have them, I’ll be fine,” Harry said, grinning at his own humor.

Baldy looked nervous, glancing from one friend to the next. “What does that mean, split?”

She tipped her head. “You don’t know? I’ll tell you. I’ve only seen one man survive it. The others killed themselves within two days of it happening.”

The four men looked uneasy, glanced at each other, then shrugged their shoulders. Red moved closer and said, “You have an evil tongue. I think I’ll cut it out.”

“Too late. I’ve already cursed you. And I’m the only one who can remove it. Don’t close your eyes this eve.”

Red said, “’Tis no threat.”

Ugly whispered, “Why would they kill themselves?”

“She’s lying.”

“Don’t listen to her.”

“She’s trying to scare us into letting her go.”

“It won’t kill us, even if it were true.”

“What could happen?”

Jennet giggled quietly to herself, then she whispered, “The curse means for the rest of your life, every step you take, your bollocks will bang together, causing you intense pain every time you move.”

The men grew wide-eyed, frowns and fear crossing their faces. “She’s lying,” Red said.

“Imagine how it will feel when you run. The faster you run, the harder they hit…” She stared up at the skies.

Baldy said, “She’s spooking me, Harry. Make her stop.”

Harry shook his head. “Don’t fall for her lies. She’s trying to make us leave her be.”

“Am I?” She closed her eyes and chanted, “I summon the birds to gather the fork-tongued snakes for this eve.” Her voice grew louder, and she broke into a loud verse of song.

Then she ended the song and whistled. Instantly, the birds in the tree all took to flight, the sudden movement causing exactly the effect she’d hoped for. The flapping of the birds’ wings caused two of the men to yell and mount their horses.

“Whoever unties me will be the only one saved from the curse!”

Slim raced over and cut her bindings, then he mounted his horse and followed the other three back onto the trail.

Jennet rubbed her wrists. She was free. Hurrying in the other direction, she tripped over tree roots as she frantically looked for her horse, praying he wasn’t far off. No one followed her, fortunately. Now she just had to decide for certain what to do next.

Go back to Ramsay land or head to Black Isle?

She finally found her horse a good distance away, and she knew she should have mounted, but her hands were shaking. Before she knew it, every part of her body was shaking. From fear or what, she wasn’t sure, but she couldn’t mount.

She leaned against the horse, closing her eyes as she wrapped her arm around his neck. A voice came from behind her. “I’ll take the risk.”

Spinning around, she tried to lash out at Ugly, but he was too fast. He grabbed her and began dragging her away from her horse. She had to do something. Noticing how the blisters on her hand from the candle wax had opened up, a sudden idea popped in her head. “You want the pox? Because I have it.”

She shoved her hand up to his face, showing him the bleeding welts. “Shove your hardened rod anywhere near me and it’ll be covered with the same in two nights.” Holding her breath, she waited to see if he would fall for this lie.

Instead, he stuck his face close to hers and said, “No problem. I have the pox already.”

***

Ethan pondered his next move. He knew he should sleep, but he couldn’t. Nightmares of Jennet screaming set him outside the cave on two occasions. Was this a forewarning or someone telling him she was in trouble? He’d checked the area for her but found nothing, though he was convinced of one thing—Jennet was in trouble.

After he had breakfast, he would decide on where to go searching for her. Sitting just inside the cave where he could observe his surroundings, he pulled out a piece of dried beef and began to chew.

First, he’d practice his archery. Then he’d spend some time lifting and tossing boulders or logs he found. Gavin had told him both activities would build his upper body, something that would make him appear stronger and more intimidating. He’d started then and was already noticing the muscles in his arms growing larger.

An hour later, satisfied with his archery practice and pleased with the boulders he’d lifted, he set out to the south, in the general direction of Ramsay land. He’d been traveling as far as dark was nigh upon him when he stopped, thinking he’d heard a woman scream.

He tied his horse to a nearby bush and silently crept in the direction of the scream. If the sound had come from Jennet, she was definitely in trouble, as he’d rarely heard her so much as raise her voice.

Instead of a female voice, the sound of male laughter greeted him. He followed the voice and crept forward until he came to a clearing. Hiding behind some bushes, he peeked through the branches, surprised to see Jennet tied to a tree while four men laughed at her not far away.

Marcas had told him long ago to never run straight into the middle of an unknown situation, that it was far more important to see exactly what the situation was before jumping into the fray.

That meant seeing who was involved, who was the strongest threat, who was in charge, and where the situation was going. Marcas’s advice had proven fruitful many times over for him.

He listened first, trying to take in the strangers’ words, but before he could get a full assessment, Jennet threw her arms in the air and a sudden burst of flapping birds’ wings filled the area. The men ran, leaping onto their horses and leaving the area, one person untying Jennet before they left.

His instinct was to run to her, but he suspected she would be safer if he stayed away until the men left. Then he would go to her.

He didn’t have to wait long for her to be alone, as the men seemed to depart with no intention of returning, so he counted to ten—another thing his brother had taught him—but then he hesitated. He hoped that their sudden departure meant she was free of her captors, but then he watched one man return, running over to her when she was next to her horse and grabbing her. He didn’t like the way he was groping Jennet, and a fury began to build inside him.

Still hidden, he grabbed his bow, nocked an arrow, and aimed. The bastard was so close to her, Ethan knew he had ill intentions, and it made him wish to kill him, and not quickly.

Ethan caught the look in her eyes as she turned. She’d covered her fear quickly, reacting with her strength, but when he saw the glimmer of fear pass through those beautiful brown eyes, he lost control. He fired his bow, catching the bastard in his flank.

The fool spun around in confusion, grabbing at the arrow in his side and giving Ethan the chance to nock another arrow. The man was a bit too slow and totally oblivious to his surroundings at first. Ethan stepped out from behind the bushes, aimed his second arrow, and fired, piercing him in his back. Perhaps not a death blow but enough to slow him until he got Jennet away from there.

“You are not hurt?” he asked after racing to her and dropping to her side. Just being this close to her brought him odd feelings he did not understand.

“Nay, I’m fine. Ethan, watch out!”

He was caught by surprise. The villain had received a sudden surge of survival instinct and had run back to his horse to grab his own bow.

As Ethan turned around to see what was happening, an arrow caught his left shoulder, embedding deep in his flesh. He was so shocked, not only by the attacker but by the instant pain, that he reached for the arrow and yanked it out, a loud groan leaving him just before he tossed it off to the side.

He glanced over at the fool who’d run away, not surprised to see his movements slowing. Ethan’s second arrow had actually landed in the man’s other flank, and he could see the blood soaking through his clothes, having caused a much more serious wound than he’d first thought. He watched as the life force left the man’s body and the bastard crumpled to the ground. He rolled over onto his belly, his hands clamoring to remove the invading weapon, but he did not get that far.

Ethan turned to face Jennet, unsure of what to do next. According to many, this was the time to hold her, cuddle her, even lift her into his arms. But he needed to examine her first to make sure she hadn’t been injured.

“Jennet? You are hale?” he asked.

“Nay, you big beast! I’m not hale at all.”

All his mind could process in the moment was a desperate need to run.